Data

Figure 1. The chart describes the anatomical differences between men and women of the same height when comparing averages. These differences will influence body positioning on the bike.

Figure 2. The differences in proportions become more pronounced for shorter men and women. We see some anatomical differences that influence bike position between the average woman and man of 5’7” and of 5’3”. We acknowledge that not all men and women show distinct differences, and encourage riders to test ride when possible, to find the perfect frame. Our goal at Liv is to create a product that feels and rides best as many women as possible.

Figure 3. When we put the average woman onto her closest sized men’s frame, we see that she becomes too bent over and stretched out. Not only can this negatively impact her power output, pedal efficiency and balance for bike control, but it also can result in pain points such as lower back pain, neck pain and numbing of the hands. Riding in the wrong position may lead to injury down the road… or trail.

Figure 4. Height Distribution and Frame Size Breakdown. We build our bike frame sizes around the normal distribution of women's’ heights across the world to accommodate the most women possible, short and tall.

Data reveals how women activate the rectus femoris (front thigh) muscles more so than men while cycling. We design our frames with the goal to promote synergistic muscle activation of our riders to engage her power in a strong and healthy way.

Figure 6. When comparing the proportions of how much a man and woman exploit their lower body and upper body strength, we see a woman’s percentage of lower body to upper body strength is great than that of a man’s. We tailor the stiffness and compliance of a frame to meet a woman’s power demands.

Figure 7. [Hands on a new Shimano 105 Groupset]

Data shows that the average female hand is smaller and has less strength compared to the average male hand, and we hear from many of our customers that the shifting and braking levers are too far away. This year, Liv allied with prominent female road cyclists and worked with Shimano to deliver a 105 groupset that meets a demand from the women in the market.

Suspension Tuning

Figure 8. We work with our vendors to tune suspension for women by women. We work with our professional riders, Liv ambassadors and staff alike to dial shock performance across all parameters- compression, rebound, and lockout, to provide suspension optimized for our riders and our bikes.

Athlete Feedback

[Image of Coryn on Prototype Langma]

Figure 9. We use our athletes, staff, and ambassadors to collect data on prototype frames.